Updated 03/31/2018 at 02:16:56 hrs

Maxim – def. – A general truth, fundamental principle, or rule of conduct.

Will hopes that applying his “Universal Maxims”, you will find that your daily life is more positive. They put you in charge. These “Universal Maxims” began to reveal themselves to Will over time. It is Will’s core belief that “We are a tapestry of our life’s experiences^©." Decades of fact finding and deconstructing complex and often redundant problems yielded many lessons. The “Universal Maxims” are a result of those lessons gleaned from thousands of investigations, interviews, and the analysis of myriad data and evidence. It became evident that in life there are a finite number of base causes, effects, and solutions. No matter how complex or unique that a “problem” or challenge appears to be, most share the same rudimentary elements. Countless lessons learned from trial and error were distilled into these “Universal Maxims”. Embracing the Maxims; problems become much less daunting and more easily solved. Will hopes that they may act as a quick guide to solutions for every day's challenges. These Maxims have been imparted them to thousands while training investigators and personnel around the globe. Many report that the Maxims made a positive change in their lives, hopefully they will be of help to you too.

The “Universal Maxims” are excerpted from Will's book; "The Survival Mind". The goal of our websites and especially Will's book is to fuel a lifelong hunger for learning; Universal Maxim #10. 

Will’s Universal Maxim© #1 – Learn a New Thing Every Day

Learning must be an endless quest. Every day our experiences are brimming with data points;

• Feelings
• Emotions
• Olfactory (Smells)
• Tactile (Touch)
• Auditory (Sounds)
• Visual;
  • Things
  • Angles
  • Shadows
  • Placements
  • Order
  • Disorder
  • Much More

If you watch children interacting with the world for the first time, you will see their wonderment and hunger to experience, log, learn, and master everything around them. That is normally their approach every day until they reach their early teens. It is not unusual for a child to tinker and play, explore, and interact with everything in their reach until they just, literally, fall over where they are asleep. That is the nature of healthy humans, even adults. Sadly, that is not what happens.

# 2 – You Can Learn from Anyone

You can learn something from everyone; no matter who or what their station or walk in life. Regardless of a person's position in life; social, educational, financial status, race, creed, location; they can all teach you something. In order to learn you must be open minded and willing to pay attention. You can also learn from other animate and inanimate things. You can learn from observing flora and fauna too. You can learn how to locate water, shelter, and impending threats too. The world presents us with endless lessons if we pay attention.

# 3 – Arrogance breeds ignorance

Arrogance breeds ignorance. Enough said.

Ego is healthy and necessary in moderation. Ego becomes arrogance when it is allowed to evolve into intolerance. Arrogance kills open minded critical thinking. See Maxim # 7.6

# 4 - Humility is a Sign of Excellence

As a leader or simply just yourself in life, humility is a fundamental necessity. A worthy leader should understand that making mistakes are part of taking action. Each failure is a lesson, a step closer to stable success. Strive to avoid errors. Be humble, never hide your mistakes. Remember that when people see how you treat your mistakes guides those who you lead in how to act when they make them. Be humble, those little mistakes (hopefully small and few) demonstrate your humanity.

# 5 - Garbage in Garbage Out

The fish rots from the head down.

There is a great obvious danger in the world. Although often the threat is clear, for some reason people either simply submit or accept the flaws as inevitable or simply are too lazy to reject them. Of course, the problem is those flaws and everything created by or based upon them will subsequently be flawed, exponentially. Whether it is a flaw in rules, laws, leaders, top level management, those unchecked flaws effect everyone. If you add the butterfly effect the results of our inaction can be catastrophic. See Maxim # 27 "Action versus Inaction"

 6 – Ethics and Morals Underpin Our Survival

1. Ethics are natural and immaleable.
2. Morals are negotiated amongst humans.
   1. Always remember that people rarely violate their ethics but often rationalize violating their morals.

# 7 - Humility and Ego – Constant Error Checking

1. "Humility speaks louder of your true value than anything else."
2. "The moment you believe that you know everything, you know nothing."
3. Ignorance is not bliss, it is a temporary euphoria until you get run over by the train of reality.
4. "The best way to guarantee that your beliefs and opinions are flawed is to surround yourself with only those who agree with you." - WH
   
   1. You will never be forced to error check yourself if you cannot entertain input from dissenters of your views.
5. Confidence is firmly based upon proven, repeatable results.
6. Ego is backed by one’s own perception of themselves.

# 8 - Respect

1. Respect is earned not given
   1. If you give respect without earning it loses its meaning
2. "Treat people with respect, no matter what. Treating people with respect reflects upon your character." - WH
   1. In other words; Courtesy is given. Respect is earned. Everyone deserves courtesy, general politeness and consideration.
3. A person cannot force another to "truly" respect them
   1. Respect may be gained through coercion.
   2. Respect may be gained through submission or enslavement.
      1. They may act like they respect them but it will undermine the situation
      2. Coerced respect is short lived

# 9 - Tapestry of Our Experiences

We are a tapestry of our life’s experiences. ©

# 10 - Basic Human Behaviors

Without language and civil discourse, we as humans revert to these basic human traits:

All humans are inherently.

1. Lazy
   1. We begin lazy.
2. Greedy
   1. We see others have things that we want (greed)
3. Violent
   1. We want it so much that we take it (violent)

No matter how far that we advance from the root human tendencies those inherent traits remain just beneath the surface. People “behave” when they believe that someone will see what they do. Nearly everyone “misbehaves” outside of a watchful eye or the threat to detection. It is for that reason that religion throughout millennia has hung some version of the threat of “hell,” eternal damnation, or the sword of Damocles over the masses in order to maintain order and civil behavior. Check out the article entitled, “Why are people brutal?” to expand upon some related ideas.   t people perceive themselves to be. It becomes more likely that they will digress into selfish

# 11 - Communication

1. Civil discourse is crucial for the survival of societal order.
2. Thoughtful debate is the lynch pin to a balanced and well proven set of morals and beliefs.
3. The most critical form of communications is listening. Always entertain the ideas and opinions of those who, civilly, disagree with you.
   1. the most dangerous thing is to surround yourself with only those who agree with you.
      1. There is no motivation to double check your facts and position.
      2. There is no risk for being wrong, even if you are.
      3. The challenge of civil opposition fosters growth and learning.

 # 12 - Words Have Meanings

Respecting language, taking the time and trouble to learn its proper usage, application, and some respect for the meaning of words protects not only the language but the culture and the society that is represents. Language is a key glue that holds the society together.

1. Language is a key glue that holds the society together. Respecting language
2. Language; words, are the key to communication.
3. No single action is as important the survival of a society (nation) than the careful stewardship of the language (words).
4. A strong focus on education in the proper usage and application of language and its words is necessary to maintain.
5. Respect for the meaning of words protects not only the language but the culture and the society that is represents.

# 13 - Happiness is fleeting

"Happiness is fleeting; like a sunset, it comes in brief spurts." - WH

• Sometimes it only lasts 5 minutes; like a sunset.
• Other times it lasts a day; like time in the outdoors. 
• Take note, and rejoice in the moment, nothing lasts forever.
• Savor the moments share them if you can.
• Those moments help us weather the challenges of life.

# 14 - The Fundamental Nature of Life - The Cold Hard Facts of Life

1. Life is not fair.
2. Life is rarely predictable.
3. Life is a complex and chaotic human endeavor.
4. Life is a clash of opposing wills.
   1. (Adapted and borrowed two of the three, 3 & 4, enduring truths that describe the fundamental nature of war, from the USA war college).

There is no spring without a winter, No life without death.

# 15 - Victimhood

1. You are only a victim when you cede your right to be in charge.
2. You are never in control, but you can choose to be in charge, all of the time.
3. Putting on the mantle of victimhood is an act of giving up and giving in.

# 16 - Quid Pro Quo

1. Healthy interactions require a fair exchange
2. You cannot help others if you have ignored oneself.

# 17 - Negotiate for Everything - Never Take the First Offer

If the seller offers you something for free, they were likely having a hard time selling it.

Whether negotiating a strategic position, a contract, the price on a vehicle, or dinner out, those on the other side will always leave room for negotiation. NEVER LEAVE THAT "ROOM" ON  THE TABLE. 

# 18 - Potential vs. Known Threat

A Potential Threat is Always More Daunting Than a Known Threat. The key point strategically is that they don't know what they don't know, the unknown is the danger. You cannot prepare for it, you cannot plan for it.

# 19 - Expectations

1. Nothing is free under the sun.
   1. They would not give you something for free if they could get you to pay for it.
   2. Ask yourself, in order to receive that free thing, what are you agreeing to pay for that you never would otherwise?
2. If something appears to be too good to be true, it is.
3. Never overlook the butterfly effect.

  # 20 - Patience

1. Thoughtful transition to action will save you many a troubling moment.
2. “Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson
3. You know the saying, “patience is a virtue”. In fact, patience is the act of intellect and self-control.

# 21 - The (devil) solution is in the details

Pay attention to the details, all answers are present, one simply needs to see it.

# 22 - Measure Twice, Cut Once

Details are everything, refer to Maxim # 20. You can measure 2 or 10 times, simply be right, accurate. Be clear that you understand all of the details prior to cutting. You can't take the cut back once you do it. Always double check. In fact, if you have someone else who is invested and understands have them check too.

# 23 -  Compromise

1. There are three states in human interaction
   1. Compromise
   2. Tyranny
   3. Slavery
2. Everything in life requires compromise
   1. The key is to only compromise as long as it does not compromise your freedoms and rights.
3. The USA is a Republic not a Democracy, that is because a true democracy is chaos.
   1. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights recognized unalienable rights and promised, under contract with the people, to protect them and keep them unmolested.
   2. A Democracy is chaos;
      1. Everyone gets what they want
      2. Therefore no one gets what they want
   3. Democracy will always descend into majority rule, where two wolves and one lamb vote on what is for dinner.

# 24 - Trust

1. In the 2003 remake of the movie “the Italian Job” there is a great line. It presents a rule to live by when you deal with people.
   1. “I trust everyone. It's the devil inside them I don't trust”
2. Ronald Reagan was especially known for his trust precept, which he repeated to Mikhail Gorbachev repeatedly. The origin of the phrase is actually from a Russian proverb, "doveryai no proveryai" Доверяй, но проверяй
   1. Trust but verify

# 25 - Responsibility

1. With great power, comes great responsibility.
   1. Everything that we have, every time that we take power over something or someone, inherently comes with a level of responsibility.

# 26 - Emotions, Stoicism, and Analytical Thinking

1. Stoic Thought is a balance or Analytical thought and Emotions.
   1. Stoicism leans analytical but respects the balance added by guarded emotion.
   2. Leaders are best served by a stoic nature.
2. Emotional thought is often illogical and unpredictable.
   1. Emotions are important
   2. Emotions are what define our humanity
   3. The danger with unchecked emotion is that if a person regularly experiences high, highs, they will inevitably experience low, lows.
   4. Unchecked emotions are destructive and disruptive.
3. Analytical thought is cold and calculating.

# 27 – Feelings ARE NOT FACTS

It is simple, feelings are emotional, subjective, biased, malleable, unstable, NOT REAL. Factual statements are based upon OBJECTIVE evidence. Evidence which can be repeated by peers and detractors. Refer to Maxim # 21 if there are any questions.

# 28 - Innovation and Risk Aversion

• Innovation is invention
• Invention is risk
• Dare to win, dare to fail
• Risk Aversion kills innovation and success
• Risk is a inescapable part of decision making.
  • The hunger for knowledge diminishes with age, in most people.
  • Risk plays a part in the belief in human limitations.

# 29 - Action versus Inaction

1. Taking no action is still an action.
2. Inaction is the lowliest form of action.
3. Inaction enslaves you to the will and actions of others.
4. You should never forget the Butterfly Effect
   1. The concept that small causes can have large effects
   2. Essentially, your actions must be well considered, as they may affect much more than that which you intended.

# 30 -The Law of Unintended Consequences

Originally he intended to develop a theorem to apply toward computational chaos. Lorenz was developing the chaos theory he coined the term the “butterfly effect.” The butterfly effect is the concept that small causes can have large effects, state of a deterministic nonlinear system. nonlinear dynamics and deterministic chaos. He found order in chaos.

Today "The Butterfly Effect" has crossed the boundary into sociological and the general social conversation. Will suggests that the idea of "The Butterfly Effect" was; nothing in life is linear. 

# 31 - Predictability and Chaos

1. Nothing in life can is totally predicable from a human standpoint.
2. Chaos is a given in the world, it is ubiquitous.
   1. Chaos – When the present determines the future, but the approximate present does not approximately determine the future
      

# 32 - Coincidence

1. There is no such thing as a coincidence.
   1. When something falls over when someone opens the door into the room, it is not a coincidence, it is a series of actions, reactions and a result. That is true throughout life.
2. Nothing happens by accident. (See coincidence)
3. Everything is a result of action; taken or not taken.

# 33 - Theories Are Only Starting Points

1. Theory denotes the word theoretical which is defined as impractical.
2. Actions taken based upon theory depends upon faith that if you act in line with the theory that you will get the desired result.

# 34 - Creative Problem Solving

Every challenge can be solved by breaking it into its individual parts.

1. 1. Industries build complex things by breaking them into assemblies. The assemblies are then joined into a process. Those processes come together to make a total product or complete an action. Problem solving is like reverse engineering.

# 35 - Attitudes and Approach

1. Every problem can be resolved by reducing it to its root components
2. There is nothing new in this world
   1. Embrace this fact and stress and confusion melts
   2. Study history and you will likely learn how to resolve anything that you encounter
3. What seems impossible to you, is simple to someone else

# 36 - Knowledge

1. Knowledge is not power; Wisdom and Enlightenment are.
2. Knowledge; facts are the beginning not the end.
3. The goal in life is to own what you know, become enlightened, so that you can give your knowledge and wisdom to another so that they may do the same.
4. You never truly “know” something unless you can put it to action.
5. If you don’t “know” never say that you do.
6. You only “know” if you can demonstrate it, hands on.

# 37 - Strive to Do It Right the First Time

Each time that you perform a task, you connect a Dendrite through an Axon to an Axon Terminal creating a neural pathway. If the first time that you do something it was done wrong, you run the risk of establishing a neural pathway "imprinting the memory" of the mistake. Have you ever driven to a place that you never had been to before? If you got lost going there, did you repeat that same mistake the next time that you went? After a few trips repeating the original mistake(s), you will have "burned in" the neural pathway of how to get there unfortunately, repeating the original mistake. That is why you should exploit all sources of proper input when doing new things. Avoid being forced to retrain yourself to do it right. Learn from others qualified to instruct and guide you. Repetitively performing the actions correctly establishes a proper neural pathway. Many know this activity as creating "muscle memory."

# 38 - Bias – Natural and Learned

1. Bias is unavoidable
   1. As civilized people with advanced general education communication erases most natural biases.
   2. Poor and negative behaviors are not protected under this scenario because they are justified protective acts.
2. Prejudice is a clear example of natural bias.
   1. Trepidation of the unknown is healthyCreative Problem SolvingEvery challenge can be solved by breaking it into its individual parts.

1. 1. Industries build complex things by breaking them into assemblies. The assemblies are then joined into a process. Those processes come together to make a total product or complete an action. Problem solving is like reverse engineering.

# 39 - You Are the Only Limitation to Your Potential

Humans have nearly unlimited potential. Every day something or someone “teaches” us that we cannot. For the most part, we can, but when we “learn” that we cannot, we rarely try again. We must constantly strive to prove that we can, dispel the neigh Sayers and succeed despite them.

Explanatory Note:

As we grow, mature, learn, interact with the world we do so in large part through the nurturing of others around us. As the blank slate, ready to molded into a masterpiece, the child in Universal Maxim #1, we begin processing data. We learn from trial and error. Language does not allow others to get in the way. Only experience, forced deprivation, and violence can sway our learning. Then language enters and allows others to posit ideas and limitations in our psyches. As our social circles (other babies, caregivers, daycare, preschool, etc.) The raw data and learning process is immediately derailed. Instead of allowing the child to foster, with quality oversight, experiences and learn natural skills, propensities, and pleasures, others begin to dictate, and even mandate “the way things are.”

Once we are thrust into the social and institutional circles of modern society human learning completely changes. Institutional learning was originally created to level the base skills available to all US Citizens in order to assure enough workers for the factories and business. It makes good sense for the government to foster intellectual competence. It is good for the economy and good for the general peace. Unfortunately, theory and reality rarely meet at the end of the tunnel without a train wreck.

My Grandfather infected me with an insatiable hunger for knowledge. The problem, he said, was that no one ever taught most people to crave knowledge. My Sunday School teacher, when I was 12 years old, told me about how different people learn in different ways. Later in life I studied Howard Gardner’s – Multiple Intelligences, it validated everything that I had already surmised; institutionalized education stunts growth and excellence. Check out these two websites for more information on Howard Gardner and MI (Multiple Intelligences).

More on MI and Howard Gardner in another article.

There are two rather simple reasons. The primary reason that our learning tapers off is that we are taught by institutional learning and ourselves what we cannot do. The second reason is as stated in the first paragraph; humans are either taught what we cannot do. Finally, some people are simply inherently lazy.

The idea of institutionalized learning was sold to the American people as a baseline assurance that all citizens would be able to perform basic necessary tasks and functions. Unfortunately, it did not work out that way. Over the years the institutional learning system, now known as the US Department of Education, mandates much more than the original intent. They are involved in social indoctrination, sex education, and many more things which have nothing to do with baseline performance. The most outrageous thing is that they are not even allowed to mandate proficiency in the English Language. Language being the cornerstone of what binds a civil society together should be the top priority of a national educational mandate.

# 40 - Survival

Do not wait for the crisis to arrive, before you consider the solution. It is not if, it is when.

1. “There is no disaster when you are prepared ”. PracticeSurvival’s Rule
2. Crises are generally a result of apathy or neglect

# 41 - Planning

1. Planning is an essential part of being proactive.
2. Plans should be based upon solid historical data and proven processes.
3. Often plans are based upon theoretical ideas that the planners are not even of. Those theories are often destructive.
4. You spend at least 80% of your waking hours working, you must love what you do or you will through away your life.

Simply put, the reason that humans are so brutal goes to a deep set of physiological factors.

Self-preservation is the first factor. If you are hungry or thirsty, if your children or loved ones are, you will rationalize many behaviors that you would otherwise view as repugnant. We see this play out during times of crisis. During one of the most horrendous times in history; Joseph Stalin oversaw one of the worst genocides in the history of mankind. The Communist/Socialist regime used starvation as a weapon against the people of Ukraine. It was so bad that the Soviet government posted posters imploring the people to not eat their children. Estimates reveal that they caused 7 to 10 million Ukrainians to starve to death between 1932 and 1933. The people turned to eating their dead, even killing their children to eat them. Unfortunately, there are many other instances of similar human suffering, the majority of them under the stewardship of collectivism/Socialist/Communist governments.

It is language which binds us together. It underpins the creation of customs, common experiences, and in turn establishes a hierarchical system and rules. Without language we digress into hungry scared creatures scraping for food. Without language, we as human revert to what I have coined Will’s Proverb #9; basic human traits: lazy, greedy, and violent. All humans are inherently. We begin lazy. We see others have things that we want (greed). We want it so much that we take it (violent). Refer to Will's Proverb #9.

No matter how far that we advance from the root human tendencies they remain just beneath the surface. The further we get from our liberty, freedom, and safety being threatened, the more powerful and protected that people perceive themselves to be. It becomes more likely that they will digress into selfish destructive behaviors. Excessive regulation provokes similar responses.

Individualism is great but, if people are to survive and attain greatness they must learn to interact with each other in a civil manner. Unfortunately, the social constructs created by religion has often caused the failure and collapse of great nations. Well read students of history have seen the effects of unbridled altruism on great nations. There is a balance that must be struck. Finding that balance is elusive.

Click here to read our article on Machiavelli.

Click here to read our article on Guarding Yourself from Manipulation

It is worth reading two of Nicolo Machiavelli’s treatise:

• “The Prince” Click here for the PDF

• “On the Art of War”

http://www.survivewithwill.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/machiavelli_the_art_of_war.pdf

Machiavelli is known as the "Father of Modern Political Theory". His divergence of political/social morals from religion may have some value in this discussion.